Great products get the most hate
The truth about why your product doesn't sell but you still get compliments for it
Hi everybody, I hope you’ve had a great week! Last’s week’s newsletter generated some noise. I had some people telling me they loved it and some people telling me they hated it.
This newsletter goes out to my good friend Georges, who was one of the ones who told me he didn’t like last article at all. It’s great to have a friend that gives you honest feedback, because most of the time people close to you will tell you they like your product just to make you feel good.
If you haven’t read last week’s article you can check it out here and let me know what you think!
However, it really got me thinking a lot about what reactions do great product generate and. I came to the following conclusion:
Greatest products get the most hate.
Let me explain why…
Mediocre products are not opinionated
Mediocre products are not opinionated. Mediocre products have no personality. They are built and used without glory. They do their job well most of the times, but nothing in them stands out. Mediocre products are plain and dull. People will use them all the time, but won’t remember them with any emotion. Mediocre products are just that, and that’s why people also never hate on them.
Who is ever going to hate on the just regular hamburger place down the street, or the standard marketing campaign that a standard marketing firm does? Who is ever going to hate a regular ham and cheese sandwich? Who is going to hate another standard entrepreneurship newsletter (pun intended)?
You get what I’m trying to say right? Just regular, normal, non innovative products and businesses are not going to get any hate because people don’t really notice them. They don’t stand out and follow the rule and although people are ok with them, but don’t however remember them because there is nothing mesmerizing in them.
However, if you ask anyone about your mediocre product, they are immediately going to praise it and tell you it is amazing. This very typical in sales, people that tell you that they love your product most of the times will never end up buying it.
Great products create fans and haters
Great products, on the other side, are bold, unapologetic, have personality and innovative.
Great products are built for an exact type of person, but not for everyone else. Great products are not meant to make everyone happy but just a few. This is why they create huge fans.
Companies that transform their clients in fans are the most valuable because their fans will buy each and one of the new products the company releases, as long it maintains its culture and personality.
However, it’s great products that will also get the most hate. Since they target a specific type of person, people that don’t fit the profile can hate them.
At the same time, great products being bold and innovative create resistance in people that aren’t. Changing the establishment is never easy.
The idea that I want to put trough in this article is that sometimes getting hate means you are doing something right.
Getting some hate means you are doing something right
If you don’t agree with me so far, let me prove my point with some of the most successful products today!
1. Crocs
Everyone knows Crocs. It’s a product that only has one main quality: it’s super comfortable. It’s crazy because they are just plastic shoes that must cost less than 5$ to make and sell for over 50$!
The thing is, these shoes get a big amount of hate because of how ugly they are. But at the same time they have die hard customers that love them. With regards to the haters, there is even a website dedicated to the elimination of Crocs. Needless to say the company is doing great, having reported growing to $3.6 billion in revenues for 2022 with a 54% growth over 2021. Who needs to invest in tech when you have Crocs right?
2. Apple Airpods
In this case, it’s a matter of being a bold, innovative product. When released, Apple airpods were really hated on, with people (I must admit this was me) thinking they looked stupid and that nobody would were them because of how awkward they felt. Needless to say I was wrong.
Now, Airpods have not only been a best seller and changed the way the world listens to music and talks through the phone but it generates more revenue than many big tech companies like spotify, paypal or twitter! Now that I mention those, companies, weren’t Spotify, Tesla and even Ebay hated at first?
3. Credit Cards
When they first allow to pay with credit carts at McDonalds’’ it was completely rejected by the general public. See the video below.
4. Cowboy boots
Ok, maybe this isn’t the best example, but Jeff Bezos on them is kind of cool.
Humane Pin AI?
There’s already plenty of people saying they hate the new Humane Pin AI , while so many people are completely excited about it. We still don’t know if the product will be successful but the fact that it’s being talked about so much so far means the product is at least bold and unapologetic.
5. Venture Street Newsletter
Go big or go home
To build a great company you need to create a great product for your ideal client and not everyone else. Trying to not stand out of the mainstream will exactly do that for you company and it won’t stand out. So don’t be afraid of position your product because the only thing that’s worse than a really bad but bold product is a mediocre one.
Let me know what you think about it and please don’t forget to share and subscribe!